Verizon Wireless Unveils Device to Rival iPhone

Verizon Wireless has unveiled three new cellphones for the holiday season, one of which -- the high-end Voyager -- is designed to compete with Apple's iPhone. "We think it'll be the best phone...this year. It will kill the iPhone," said Verizon Wireless Chief Marketing Officer Mike Lanman. The Voyager, manufactured by LG Electronics, resembles the iPhone in that it has a touchscreen and a Web browser. Its claim to superiority is based on the faster Web access it offers the user and the QWERTY keypad it provides under a hinged door. "People who want a high-end media phone and want to stay with Verizon will certainly give [the Voyager] a hard look," said Current Analysis analyst Avi Greengart, but "I don't know that it would pull anybody away from an iPhone." Verizon Wireless's other two new phones are the Juke, an ultra-slim phone shaped like a chocolate bar, and the Venus. The three phones will range in price from less than $100 to about $400. The Juke will go on sale October 19; Voyager and Venus will be released in November. "This is something Verizon had to do," said Greengart. "It's been a long time coming for them to get hotter devices."